The federal government will empower 200 youths in Oyo State with vocational and digital skills as well as start-up equipment under the National Poverty Reduction with Growth Strategy (NPRGS).
The beneficiaries will undergo training in Graphics and Artificial Intelligence (AI), Makeup and Fashion Designing, with each participant receiving the equipment required to immediately start or expand a business after completing the programme.
The two-week training, being implemented by the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Technical, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Education (OSSAP-TVEE), will begin on September 28 and end on October 9, 2026.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Technical, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Education, Dr Abiola Arogundade, announced the programme in a statement on Tuesday.
She said trainees in Graphics and AI would receive laptops, those undergoing Makeup training would get fully equipped makeup kits, while Fashion Designing beneficiaries would receive sewing machines and starter kits.
Arogundade said the intervention was structured to ensure that beneficiaries did not leave the programme with skills alone but also had the basic tools required to translate their training into sustainable livelihoods.
The programme will culminate in a graduation ceremony and grand finale on October 9, during which the Federal Government will also distribute 500 tablets to young Nigerians as part of its wider digital empowerment drive.
According to the Presidency, the Oyo programme is part of the nationwide expansion of the NPRGS skills initiative across the six geopolitical zones.
The Presidency had earlier announced that each geopolitical zone would host 200 trainees under the current nationwide phase, with courses selected on the basis of local market demand, relevance and the preferences of beneficiaries.
Oyo State is serving as the South-West hub, while the programme is also being extended to Enugu in the South-East and Kebbi in the North-West.
The initiative followed an earlier pilot programme launched in Abuja on June 30, 2025, where beneficiaries received intensive training in cybersecurity, web development and solar energy installation.
The Abuja pilot attracted more than 7,000 applications, according to the Presidency, with graduates receiving laptops and certificates after completing the programme.
Arogundade said the latest intervention underscored the Federal Government’s commitment to equipping young Nigerians with practical and marketable skills, productive tools and opportunities to build sustainable sources of income.
She added that the NPRGS was using skills development and entrepreneurship to broaden economic participation and improve livelihoods, particularly among young Nigerians.
The nationwide initiative is expected to cover 1,200 youths across the six geopolitical zones in its initial phase, with 200 beneficiaries allocated to each zone.
The programme forms part of the Federal Government’s broader poverty-reduction strategy, which seeks to combine economic growth with targeted social interventions and skills development to promote entrepreneurship and self-reliance among Nigerians.